The government of Swaziland today warned democracy advocates that a planned march to protest the new constitution would be met with force. Political observers feel that if the planned march to deliver a petition to King Mswati next month is successful, it could signal a resurgence of pro-democracy forces.
Swaziland Federation of Labor (SFTU) secretary general Jan Sithole said the drafting of a fresh constitution that included "all of civil society", rather than a palace-controlled process, was among the demands of the protesters.
Swazi Prime Minister, Themba Dlamini, has implored members of the police force to ‘protect’ the constitution in the event of protest. He said he has been going around telling members of the police force to make sure that they should protect the constitution. He told the Times of Swaziland that the king, himself and government were going to protect the constitution no matter what.
The “parliament” of Swaziland was told not long ago by a delegation representing civic organizations in Swaziland the new constitution produced for their country places too much power in the hands of the Swazi king and denies basic rights to the Swazi citizenry. Addressing the Portfolio Committee on Foreign Affairs, members of the Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic Organizations said that the constitutional process was flawed and undemocratic itself, as it denied submissions from political parties and interest groups. "The constitution-making process has been unilaterally governed by, not even the government, but the king," a delegate told the committee, referring to the country's King Mswati III, crowned in 1986.
Under the new constitution, said the delegation, a citizen cannot seek redress in court if the king's name is mentioned in legal proceedings, because of the legal immunity the king enjoys.
Further, the king can "withhold his assent" on bills passed in parliament, preventing them being passed into law using in what effectively amounts to a power of veto over all legislation, the portfolio committee heard.
The king is also empowered by the new constitution to disband the 104-seat (70 seats in the assembly and 30 in a senate, with four seats reserved for women) parliament, in which retains a quota of a total of 30 appointees.
The rule of law in Swaziland is also regularly flouted, said the delegation, citing the example of the resignation en masse of appeal court judges after a ruling they made was ignored.
And Swaziland's Human Rights Commission cannot investigate charges against the king or any member of the Swazi royal family, the delegation said.
BuaNews says that Bishop Meshack Mabuza of the Anglican church of Swaziland, who led the delegation, also cited the "profligate spending" of the Swazi government and/or monarchy as fiscal indiscipline, exemplified by government's intentions to purchase a private jet for the king worth hundreds of millions of rands.
This new, undemocratic constitution, according to the delegation, comes against a background where more than four people in 10 is HIV-positive, where 69 percent of the population lives on less than US$1 (R6) a day, and where unemployment is estimated at 50 percent.
The Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic Organizations comprises the Federation of Swaziland Employers and the Chamber of Commerce, the Association of Swaziland Business Community, the Federation of Trade Unions, the Federation of Labor, the Church, the Law Society of Swaziland,, the National Association of teachers, Lawyers for Human Rights, the Swaziland chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa as well as women's groups and non-governmental organizations. Sources: BuaNews (Tshwane), The Times of Swaziland, IRIN
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